Grindal Rawson
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Grindal Rawson (1659 - 1715)

Rev. Grindal Rawson
Born in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts Baymap
Ancestors ancestors
Husband of — married 30 Aug 1682 in Medfield, Suffolk, Massachusettsmap
Descendants descendants
Died at age 56 in Mendon, Suffolk, Massachusetts Baymap
Problems/Questions
Profile last modified | Created 31 Aug 2010
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Biography

The Rev. Grindal Rawson,[1] the son of Edward Rawson and Rachel Perne, was born in Boston 23 January 1659.[2] Rev. Rawson was one of the ancestors of President William Howard Taft.[3]

Grindal graduated from Harvard College in 1678. "After taking his first degree, "he was invited," so writes his wife, in a letter to Cotton Mather, 'by his brother-in-law, the Rev. Mr. Samuel Torrey, to come to his house and study Divinity there, which he did, with such proficiency, that he was advised to enter upon preaching. He preached his first sermon at Medfield with great acceptation, and after two months' occasional performances at other places, he received an invitation [Oct 4, 1689,] to Mendon,' in the county of Worcester, whither about twenty families had recently returned, the town having been abandoned by its inhabitants during King Philip's War. "[4]

On 30 August 1682, Grindal married Susanna Wilson, the daughter of The Reverend John Wilson and his wife Sarah Hooker. Susanna's grandfather was the Rev. John Wilson the first minister of the first church at Boston and the grandnephew of Edmund Grindal, the Archbishop of Canterbury during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. Grindal and Susanna were the parents of twelve children: Edward (died young), Edward (died young), John (died young), Susanna, Edmund, Wilson, Mary, Rachel, John, David (died young), Grindal and Elizabeth.[5]

Grindal served as the minister at Mendon for 34 years. He is well noted for learning the local Native American language, Algonquian, so that he could preach to the local natives in their own language. He also translated popular religious texts into Algonquian, including: Thomas Shepard’s Sincere Convert, John Cotton’s Spiritual Milk, and a Confession of Faith for Boston Churches.[6]

Grindal died 6 February 1715 at Mendon, at the age of 57. [7] His remains rest in a tomb at the Old Cemetery at Mendon. ""Here Lyeth Interr'd the Body of the Reverend Mr. Grindall Rawson, the late faithful and learned Pastor of the church of Christ in Mendon, who died Feby. 6, 1715, and entered 6 days into ye 57th year of his age Deceased the 35th year of his ministry. The memory of the Just is Blessed."[8]

"In the funeral sermon which Cotton Mather preached at Mr. Rawson’s decease, he characterizes him in the following words: 'We generally esteemed him a truly pious man, and a prudent one, and a person of temper, and every way qualified for a friend that might be delighted in. We honored him for his industrious oversight of the flock in the wilderness which had been committed unto him, and the variety of successful pains which he took for the good of those to whom God had therefore exceedingly endeared him. We honored him for his intellectual abilities, which frequently procured applications to him, and brought him sometimes upon our most conspicuous theatres, and we usually took it for granted that things would be fairly done where he had a hand in the doing of them. We honored him for doing the work of an evangelist among our Indians, of whose language he was a master that had scarce an equal, and for whose welfare his performances were such as render our loss herein hardly to be repaired. Such services are Pyramids."[9]

After his death, Susanna wrote a moving tribute to her husband which was sent in a letter to the Rev. Cotton Mather. It is too lengthy to reproduce in the biography here; however, a link to the tribute, which was published in the Rawson Family Memorial, is here. The tribute is well written, and provides an insight into the character and education of its author.[10]

Marriage

"Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," [11]

Name: Grindall Rawson
Marriage: 30 Aug 1682 Medfield, Norfolk, Massachusetts
Spouse: Susanna Wilson

Sources

  1. He spelled his name "Grindal Rawson" on documents that he signed, although his gravestone and some of those he ministered to used Grindall.
  2. Genealogical and Personal Memoirs Relating to the Families of Boston and Eastern Massachusetts, Volume 4, by William Richard Cutter Lewis historical Publishing Company, 1908, page 1997.
  3. Roberts, Gary Boyd; Ancestors of American Presidents. Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2009.
  4. Taken from NEHGS Register, Vol 3, p 300-301, October 1849.
  5. Genealogical and Personal Memoirs Relating to the Families of Boston and Eastern Massachusetts, Volume 4, by William Richard Cutter, Lewis Historical Publishing Company, 1908, page 1997.
  6. From English to Algonquian: Early New England Translations an article relating to Rev. Rawson's work in the Algonquian language.
  7. Massachusetts Town Vital Records 1620-1988; Reverend Grindal Rawson; death date 6 February 1715 at Mendon, MA.
  8. Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com : accessed 27 June 2020), memorial page for Rev Grindall Rawson (23 Jan 1658–6 Feb 1715), Find A Grave: Memorial #7303594, citing Old Cemetery, Mendon, Worcester County, Massachusetts, USA ; Maintained by Alison Franks (contributor 46542183).
  9. The Reverend Grindal Rawson, the second minister of the Church of Christ in Mendon from 1680 to 1715, by Miss Sarah L. Staples [of Mendon, Taft Public Library in Mendon, MA. This biography provides wonderful details concerning Rev. Rawson's life and work and is highly recommended.
  10. Susanna Rawson's Letter to the Rev. Cotton Mather. The Rawson Family: A Revised Memoir Or Edward Rawson, Secretary of the Colony of Massachusetts Bay, from 1650-1686; with Genealogical Notices of His Descendants, Including Nine Generations, published by the family, 1875.
  11. database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FHNH-XZ5 : 5 November 2017), Grindall Rawson and Susanna Wilson, 30 Aug 1682; citing Marriage, Medfield, Norfolk, Massachusetts, United States, , town clerk offices, Massachusetts; FHL microfilm 721,179.




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DNA Connections
It may be possible to confirm family relationships with Grindal by comparing test results with other carriers of his Y-chromosome or his mother's mitochondrial DNA. However, there are no known yDNA or mtDNA test-takers in his direct paternal or maternal line. It is likely that these autosomal DNA test-takers will share some percentage of DNA with Grindal:

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Comments: 3

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Grindal Rawson (1659 - 1715) was my 8th Great Grandfather !!!
Grindal signed his documents "Grindal Rawson," so I made a change to reflect this. Thank you. David
posted by David Pierce
Rawson-456 and Rawson-99 appear to represent the same person because: They are the same person.
posted by J. (Pearson) Salsbery